Alternative Knitting Materials

When one first takes up knitting, it seems as though it is a hobby in which one material, namely yarn, reigns supreme. Indeed, yarn is the material that will be used for knitting, but in recent years, as the global market has expanded, so has the knitting world. The yarn available to the hobby knitter comes in more variations than ever before; gone are the days when just one type of yarn – albeit available in many different gauges and colours – had to be used. Alternative knitting materials means that hobby knitters can go well beyond the stereotypical wool sweater or scarf and make some truly fashionable items. Let’s take a look at what different kinds of material are available for the hobby of knitting.

Origins. Perhaps some of the greatest opportunities as far as alternative knitting materials can be found in the origins of the yarn itself. Not all yarn must come from a sheep, and this is not only beneficial for the creative, but also for those looking for a material that is less allergenic, or with different degrees of comfort. Sheep, of course, will always be the main provider of our yarn in the form of wool, but several other animal fibres are now commercially available for knitters. These include llama, alpaca, musk ox, dog, yak, camel, goat, and rabbit. Each animal will produce a different gauge of yarn and each knitted material will have a different quality.

Animals are not the only suppliers of raw materials for making yarn. Several types of plants can be used as well, the most common being cotton and flax (flax is used to make linen). Again, there are plenty of more exotic plants that can be used by the hobby knitter, including coconut (the husk), bamboo, hemp, nettles, yucca, and corn.

Finally, there are many synthetic fibres that can be used to make up alternative knitting materials. Rayon and acetate fibres are a mix of synthetic materials and cellulose from plants, and of course there is always nylon, acrylics, and polyester.

Alternative materials for knitting means that there are many more options for the hobby knitter in the clothes they want to produce. Wool will always be the most popular material used for knitting, but other materials may be preferred for reasons of maintenance or allergies.

Article Source: http://articlekarma.com

For those long winter nights free crochet patterns will help pass the time.

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